Flipkart partners with Paytm for festive sale

Walmart-owned Flipkart on Monday said it has partnered with fintech major Paytm to provide customers a slew of offers and benefits during its festive season sale.

"This partnership will enable millions of Paytm users to conveniently pay through their Paytm Wallet and Paytm UPI while shopping on Flipkart during The Big Billion Days. In addition, Flipkart customers will enjoy instant cashback to their Paytm wallets," a statement said.

This partnership is well-aligned with Flipkart's preparation ahead of the upcoming festival where it sees a huge surge in the orders across the country and will further boost the uptake of digital transactions as India continues to stay indoors and maintain social distancing, it added.

Flipkart will host its annual 'The Big Billion Days' sale from October 16-21, while Myntra will hold its 'Big Fashion Festival' between October 16-22.

The events will focus on delivering a wide range of products to existing and new consumers, while providing growth opportunities to MSMEs (Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises) and sellers across the country.

Flipkart rival, Amazon.in is expected to announce its sale dates later this week. Value-focussed e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal had said it will hold its first sale in mid-October to coincide with Navratri festivities. Its next two sales will run in late October and early November.

E-commerce companies see a large chunk of their business coming in during the festive sales and they make significant investments ahead of time to ramp up their capacity to be able to handle the spike in orders. Festive season sees players holding multiple sale events, timed around Dussehra and Diwali.

Electronics, fashion and home furnishing are some of the categories that see a huge demand during the festive season.

A report by RedSeer estimates that festive sales this year are expected to almost double and touch $7 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) as compared to USD 3.8 billion in the same period last year.

"Our partnership with Paytm showcases our commitment to make digital payment solutions customer-centric and inclusive, democratising digital payments for all. This festive season millions of Paytm users across the country will have access to their wallets and UPI on Flipkart," Flipkart Head - Fintech and Payments Group Ranjith Boyanapalli said.

He added that digital payments, including UPI, continue gaining prominence in India and Flipkart believes that digital adoption will help India get economically stronger.

"Flipkart has championed e-commerce in India, and together we aim to replace cash on delivery with digital payments via Paytm Wallet and Paytm Bank account. Our aim is to empower millions of Indians with innovative solutions that would play a key role in building Atmanirbhar Bharat," Paytm President Madhur Deora said.

The statement cited RBI data to state that the total number of digital transactions in India that are processed via any electronic mode (UPI, IMPS, debit and credit cards etc) is expected to reach a daily average of 1.5 billion in the next five years.

Consequently, the net value of digital payments in India will also increase from its current value of Rs 5 trillion to Rs 15 trillion by 2025, it added.

In a separate statement, Flipkart's fashion e-tail arm Myntra said it has collaborated with Max Fashion to bring over 15,000 of the latest styles and designs from Max Fashion's collection onto the Myntra platform ahead of its 'Big Fashion Festival'.

Myntra is targeting the sweet spot for value-conscious customers across tier I, II and III cities to strengthen its position as the leading fashion destination, the statement said.

Last month, Flipkart had also partnered with Max Fashion to offer an expanded portfolio of apparel and accessories to customers.